


Do They Know it's Christmastime At All?

by kitausuret



Category: Marvel 616, Spider-Man (Comicverse), Venom (Comics)
Genre: Brief mention of suicide attempt, Canon-Typical Violence, Christmas Eve, Domestic Fluff, Eddie Brock is a Hero, Established Relationship, Everyone is Trying to be Better, Multi, Nobody is Dead, Not Canon Compliant, Post-ASM #800
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:48:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21956905
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitausuret/pseuds/kitausuret
Summary: (A Secret Santa exchange present for a dear friend!)Several months after the events ofThe Amazing Spider-Man#800, circumstances have brought Eddie Brock, Flash Thompson, and the Venom Symbiote into a relationship with each other. Much has happened, but they have settled into a fairly comfortable routine.This Christmas Eve, each are volunteering in separate ways - Eddie at the F.E.A.S.T. Center that saved his life years ago, and Flash at his youth boxing league holiday party. But Flash has had this nagging feeling something could go horribly wrong.But everything will turn out all right, won't it?
Relationships: Eddie Brock/Flash Thompson/Venom Symbiote
Comments: 5
Kudos: 15





	Do They Know it's Christmastime At All?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Spoiler1001](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Spoiler1001/gifts).



> Merry Christmas, Spoiler! 
> 
> My gift was filling this prompt:   
> _"A fic where one of the symbiot3 was a second too late to save the other."_
> 
> CW: Mention of a suicide attempt near the end of the story.

“You’re sure it’ll be fine?”

“I’m certain.” Eddie lingered near the door with his keys in his hand, twirling them absent-mindedly as Flash looked on, unconvinced. “Why are you so nervous? We volunteer at F.E.A.S.T. almost every holiday. Besides, it’s...” He paused as if trying to find the right words. “It’s one of the few places I don’t feel as haunted by my past transgressions.”

Flash, decked out in an appropriately ridiculous Christmas sweater, managed a tight smile. It felt flat, unlike his usual bright and confident expression. “Don’t you ever just get a feeling? Like something’s going to go terribly wrong?”

“Every day,” he said. “Which is why there is a twenty-five dollar co-pay on the charge card every other Wednesday I see Dr. Nieves.”

“I didn't mean your therapist. In any case, I’m sure I could call, let them know I can’t make it in, or maybe I’ll duck out after an hour and come join you-”

“ _Eugene_.” 

He frowned at the use of his full name. “Yes, _Edward?_ ” 

“You have been talking about this Christmas Eve party for the kids you coach for the last three weeks.” Eddie crouched down, taking Flash’s hand in his own. Dark tendrils spread out from his jacket, wrapping around where they touched. “I will be fine. I’m not alone. This is important to you, and being at F.E.A.S.T. is important to me. And tonight,” he said, “we will all be at home, safe and sound, and then we’ll go to bed and-”

“-you’ll ravish me?” Flash teased with a wide grin. He took Eddie’s collar in his free hand and pulled him closer. The symbiote crawled out from that point, too, spiraling up his arm to tease at his neck. He laughed and tried to press his lips up against the dark flesh. 

“I was expecting sleep.”

“Can you say the same for our pal here?”

He laughed despite himself and kissed Flash. “Please don’t call our other your pal.”

“Our buddy, our bro-friend, our-”

“Flash, _please_.”

Flash pushed himself forward again just enough to steal another kiss. “Don’t they always say to marry your best friend?” When Eddie raised his eyebrows, Flash quickly tacked on, “I mean, you’ve got to admit, even if we’ve only been dating each other for just under a year, we have something... kinda unique.”

He stroked Flash’s cheek with the back of his knuckles. “We do, don’t we?” Eddie pulled away with another chuckle. “You’re going to make me late.”

“Mmm… true.” He turned a wheel to head towards the kitchen where a couple dozen small gift bags littered the counters. “And as cool as May Parker is… I wouldn’t want to try and explain to her why I made you late.” Flash stopped and glanced over his shoulder. “But frankly, she could probably guess.”

He rolled his eyes. “Unlike you, I don’t don my heart on my sleeve.” The fabric of his sweater suddenly shifted to create a row of… “You’re not as amusing as you think you are,” Eddie grumbled. The symbiote responded by forming a face from his shoulder and giving him a very sloppy lick. “I love you also. Please stop.”

“ _Don’t stop_ ,” Flash stage-whispered. The symbiote gave a kind of chittering noise in response. He beckoned Eddie over and leaned up for one last kiss. “Okay, okay, go, or _I’ll_ feel bad.” He clung to Eddie’s hand for just a moment longer when their fingers brushed. “Take care of each other, okay?”

The symbiote molded over about half his face, and a hand shifted into a claw. **“We always do.”** A moment later, Venom had disappeared from view, leaving only Eddie Brock. “We’ll see you at home.”

“Tell May I said ‘hi’ and that I’ll see her tomorrow.”

“Will do. See you tonight, Flash.”

\-----

All the way to the community center he coached at three times a week, Flash couldn’t shake the looming sense of dread which had hung over him since this morning. It came to him time and again, like a dark cloud over the horizon. The first time he’d felt it since losing the symbiote a few years back had been just before facing Maniac, and then again with the rise of Norman Osborn as the Red Goblin. Both times, he had nearly died.

He’d recently discussed this with the symbiote. The best they could assume was that this was some kind of residual connection to the Cosmos from their time together in space. This time, it seemed... different. The past two days, around Eddie, he had gotten this tightness in his chest that wasn’t just the endearing heartthrob upon finding one of Eddie’s notes around the apartment or waking up to the symbiote resting on his torso. He loved the both of them more than maybe anything in his life. They had all survived so much (and sometimes not survived) and always came back. Why would this time be any different?

Besides, it was Christmas, and he had better things to worry about. Like two dozen eight-to-fourteen-year-olds he wanted to make sure had as wonderful a holiday as everyone else in New York. He and a few of the other coaches had pitched in to get all the kids new boxing gloves for the next year, as well as an evening full of way too much candy and sweets. Most of them had parents or guardians working long hours right up until (or through) the holiday, and this seemed like the least that he could do. 

Flash flagged down a few of the kids and roped them into helping set up the table for cookie decorating. Nothing like frosting, candies, and sugar cookies to take his mind off his worries.

\-----

At F.E.A.S.T., Eddie stayed busy in the kitchen helping May Parker and a dozen other volunteers with the Christmas Eve setup. He’d been at this with them a good few hours already. A large tree decorated the room that served as a food hall, with a smattering of other holidays represented with their colors, menorahs and kinaras. 

He still knew a few people who had been long-time volunteers. Eddie received the occasional “I hardly recognized you!” which, frankly, wasn’t surprising - he had not exactly been in a good place when he had started giving his time here. Even now, the symbiote hung back in the recesses of his mind, less apt to make itself known than usual. 

As he carried a massive bowl of mashed potatoes to the tables at the front of the hall, he gave his other a small mental prod. _You’ve been very quiet, love._

_“...made a lot of mistakes here.”_ It brought to the forefront of his mind an old memory, of crashing through the wall of F.E.A.S.T., wrapped in rage and poisoned by a spiraling relationship with its current host. “Hurt you, and others. Trying to be better.”

_You_ are _better. We both are. It’s a process, you know that. We take it one day at a time._ He winced internally. How did Flash manage to say the phrase without making it sound like a tired cliche? 

Just as he was retreating back into the kitchen to retrieve the gravy, some instinct - not his, but Venom’s - pulled his attention away. His eyes landed on a young man, probably not yet thirty years old. The man kept to himself, near the side wall, hand fidgeting at his side. At one point, he stretched, and the motion revealed a flash of metal in his waistband. 

Eddie’s stomach dropped. They were expecting hundreds tonight. Already there had to be two-hundred in the building. The symbiote gave a questioning prod, tendrils wrapping around his hand. He ducked into a storage closet, trying to pull his thoughts together.

_No, if he sees Venom, he’ll panic. We’ll make a bad situation worse. We need to try to get him away from the crowds._ He contemplated for a moment. His solution had always been to rely on the symbiote, but that could simply put more people in danger. _I need you to go get Flash._

_“Not leaving you!”_

_Please, love! I’ll be fine. This is just a... contingency. Please trust me. Please._

For a moment, he thought it would argue against him. Finally, it conceded and slunk off, blending in as it escaped, leaving Eddie without his sweater - or his protection. He steeled himself and went to approach the armed man. He forced what he hoped was a friendly enough smile, but the way the other man stiffened upon his approach gave him pause. No turning back now, though.

“Welcome to F.E.A.S.T. You seem a little lost, need the bathroom or something?”

\-----

Things were starting to wrap up at the community center holiday party, most of the kids trying out their new gloves on the heavy bags or practice pads. Flash’d had to call out a couple, “no practicing on each other!” warnings but overall the evening had gone well. He loved these kids, and he loved seeing them grow every week. Even if things were bad at home or school, they knew that they could come here and this would be a constant. He was glad he could be there for them.   
He had lost a lot over the past couple years. Maybe he wasn’t on the streets as a vigilante so often these days (his old partner was still working through things with Eddie, after all, which necessitated a pretty consistent bond) but this... this he’d been doing since coming home after his second tour. It maybe even felt a little bit heroic.

Something nagged at the back of his mind just as he was one of the girls get her gloves off. His gut churned in warning. “Hey, Tracy?” he called out to one of the other coaches. They looked up and started over. “Can you help Mina with her gloves? I think my phone- it might be important.”

“Sure, go right ahead.” They eyed him quizzically. “Everything okay, Flash?”

“Uh, yeah, I’m sure it’s nothing, boyfriend probably just forgot his jacket or - or something.”

He had barely made it to rear door when a very familiar sensation smacked into him. “Hey, pal, what’s-”

A series of images flashed across his mind: a man, a gun, Eddie telling the symbiote to retrieve Flash, and a crowded building. “Shit, let’s-” He glanced guiltily back at the group he was about to bail on. The symbiote was already starting to form the legs that would make up the Agent Venom persona. He couldn’t even enjoy the sensation akin to slipping into a worn and comfortable pair of jeans, if jeans were a relationship with another sentient being. A quick glance around told him no one was watching, and he stashed his wheelchair. 

“Okay, let’s go.” As the symbiote carried them off into the night across New York, a little tendril slipped out with his cell phone. They touched the first contact at the top of his list. _Come on, come on, pick up,_ he silently pleaded.

“Flash? If you’re calling to apologize for missing the first three days of Hanukkah, don’t-”

“Pete, I need you to meet me at F.E.A.S.T.”

“I was planning on... wait, do you mean me, or...”

“Parker, you know who I...” The symbiote colored his words. **“You know who we mean.”**

The line went silent. Then, “I’ll meet you there.”

“Thank you.”

They only hoped they weren’t too late.

\-----

Eddie had managed to steer the man away from the main hall and into a secluded corridor. “What happened?”

“Wha-what do you mean?” 

“I saw what was at your waist.”

He blanched. “I-I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, man-” Still, his hand went to his waistband. The man was starting to panic. Eddie recognized that look in his eyes; knew it all too well. 

“Slow down. I just want... to help.” 

“You can’t help me, man, you don’t get it, nobody can.” He shook his head wildly, one hand on the butt of what Eddie now saw to be the outline of a pistol. “They told me I gotta prove myself. That if-if I can’t man up and just take one, they’ve got no use for me, I figure place like this, nobody’ll miss a homeless junkie-”

His anger boiled at such a callous thought, but he strove for calm. If he could even just stall for a little while longer, Flash and their other would be able to find him, quickly disarm the man, and put this all to rest. He held out his hand. “Give me the gun.”

“ _No!_ I can’t go back empty-handed-”

“You don’t want to do this.”

“You don’t understand! I’ve got nothing! My head’s on a stake as it is! If I can’t get in with them, I may as well-” Before Eddie could make a move, the man took out the pistol and pointed it at him. 

His hands shook. The safety clicked off. And then the man moved the gun under his own chin.

Eddie lunged before he could think. A bang went off, there was a rush of air, and something tore right through him.

\-----

It was right as they crashed through the doors of F.E.A.S.T. that they heard a loud _BANG!_ Something cut through their collective psyche like a knife, and they shouted, **“NO!”** racing past the crowd that had suddenly started into a flurry. They dashed towards their target, panic flooding them, horrified because they were _late, we’re too late, we’re too late-_

Agent Venom rounded a corner, bracing themselves, only to see-

-a familiar blue-and-red clad figure with his uniform sleeve torn off. A young man was unconscious and webbed against the wall, a gun several feet away, and

New York’s most iconic street-level hero at Eddie Brock’s side, patching up what looked like a shoulder wound. He was sitting up, though, and clutching at his shoulder to try and stem the bleeding. They heaved a sigh of relief. 

They had been too late, but Spider-Man hadn’t. 

“Deflected the gun just before it could have hit him in the chest.” He turned to Eddie. “You’re welcome.” Eddie just hissed and grumbled something under his breath. 

“Thank you, thank you,” Flash gasped out as he sank to Eddie’s other side. The symbiote immediately slipped off a good chunk of itself to work on covering the wound. 

“I’ve called 9-1- _Eddie!_ ”

They all turned in the direction of May Parker’s shrill screech of alarm. She hurried over, heedless of the costumed heroes, practically pushing past both of them. 

“I’m all right, Mrs. Parker,” Eddie managed. “Bullet went straight through. Without him-” He nodded towards Spider-Man. “-it might have been a lot worse.” He grimaced and looked to the young man still knocked out by the wall. “For both of us.”

May turned as if just now seeing the two vigilantes she had just shoved past. “Oh, well I-” She looked Agent Venom up and down, as if suddenly putting pieces together. “Never mind that. Priority is to get you to a hospital, Edward.”

**“We- I’ll take him,”** they blurted on instinct. Flash got the distinct impression Peter was staring at them from behind the mask. He was glad the symbiote hid the fact that his face had reddened. **“This man probably saved a lot of lives today.”** They had to hold back the urge to stroke his cheek. **“And we want to make sure the people who love him know what he did this Christmas Eve.”**

“What a noble sentiment,” May said. She lifted her eyebrows at Spider-Man. “You could learn a thing or two from this stranger.”

He seemed to bristle at first, but then relaxed. “You’re absolutely right, ma’am. I’ll go- crowd control.” With a kind of half-hearted wave, Spider-Man ran off to go deal with the hubbub before the authorities arrived. 

Just as Agent Venom was moving to pick up Eddie, they felt a hand on their shoulder. The spines vanished so as not to risk pricking her palm. May pinned them with a very serious look. 

“You take good care of that man, you hear?” 

**“We will, Mrs. Park- _ma’am_.”** They let a little tendril sneak out to take Eddie’s uninjured hand. **“We always will.”**


End file.
